


Blessed and Cursed

by Aaronna



Series: Soldier of Healing [6]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: (duh), Aang Is an Idiot, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Chey makes the gaang uncomfortable, Episode: s01e16 The Deserter rewrite, Feels, Gen, Herbalist Zuko (Avatar), Implied/Referenced Past Graphic Injuries, Inspired by MuffinLance's Tumblr page, Katara isn't dumb, No beta: we die like men, Sexual confused Sokka, Spirit is not amused by Jeong Jeong
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:21:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26638750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aaronna/pseuds/Aaronna
Summary: Herbalist!Zuko AU - Episode: The Deserter rewriteJeong Jeong had enough trouble with spirits without one of their blessed coming into his camp and turning everything upside down.
Relationships: Aang & Sokka (Avatar), Spirit & Aang (Avatar), Spirit & Jeong Jeong (Avatar), Spirit & Katara (Avatar), Spirit & Miyuki (Avatar), Spirit & OC(s), Spirit & The Gaang (Avatar), Spirit & Zhao (Avatar), Zhao & Miyuki (Avatar)
Series: Soldier of Healing [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1910278
Comments: 87
Kudos: 589





	Blessed and Cursed

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MuffinLance](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MuffinLance/gifts).



> I am not completely satisfied with this, but oh well, I might edit it later.

Spirit wasn't sure how he let those two convince him and Sokka into going to the Fire Days Festival, but here he was. He was enjoying having fireflakes and owning his own Blue Spirit mask like the one from his favorite play, but that was one of the very few good things. That puppet show was disturbing in the way it was warping the minds of children so they would never question why they were fighting. 

When the bender called on Katara to join him, Spirit, having never put on his mask, didn't think twice before pretending he was the one that had been pointed to. The man seemed miffed, but hid it for the most part. It wasn't clear if the performer lost control or sent the flaming dragon at him on purpose, not that it really mattered.

A push of his will and the shaped flame did his bidding. It went up and over one shoulder and then nuzzled his scarred cheek before flying into the sky and exploding like fireworks. The man looked shaken by what happened and possibly the four glares sent his way as he complained about being upstaged by a young lady. They may have caused a bit of commotion, but the guards really hadn't needed to chase them.

Now they were being taken to "More than a man really, he's a myth, but he's real, a living legend, Jeong Jeong the Deserter" by a man who helped them get away. Chey was leading them to this legend's camp, which Spirit doubted was a good idea, but he was overruled, again. He was just thankful he had put on his mask and got them out of the situation with any more of the man's explosives or using that new bison whistle. 

He was half convinced that Chey didn't even know how to get to his own camp. He had run into one deadend before Spirit took charge. Most people don't think to get up on the roof, which really showed. The guards seemed shocked the lot of them weren't in the alley when the smoke cleared.

He got to hear all about the former admiral, but thankfully his glares were keeping Aang and Sokka from making comments or removing their masks. Chey was still waxing poetry about Jeong Jeong when Spirit heard people in the trees. His dao soon met spears as they met some of their guide's old buddies.

Why was he cursed with the ability to always find trouble?

'(•V•)'

Chey could hardly believe what he had seen and was seeing now. The kid was older, but they had the handprint etched into their skin, so it had to be them. It was the Savior of the 41st Division!

Last he had heard, they kid was living with that crazy old lady in the ruins near the Pohuai Stronghold, but here they were, tied to a chair and playing with a dragon made of pure fire. Only someone insane enough to save a large portion of a doomed group of newbies would let fire that close to a burn like that. It had to be them.

His nerves got the better of him as he tried to help them escape, which was why they ended up in a dead end alley. He almost whooped with joy when the kids got to the roof and helped him up too. Rambling was his way of dealing with his excitement and it was also how the perimeter guards found them so easily. 

They got one good look at those swords and the long black hair and they let them through. They understood who this was and who would make their lives miserable if the kid didn't get to see them. After all, Zu Len was a nightmare on a good day. 

Seems the kid was the one surprised to see the 41st, likely because Lee had run his mouth when he came to warn the others they were about to have visitors. Those gold eyes landed on Zu Len then the mask was off and the remains of the division dropped to the ground. Then they all started quietly quoting their vow of loyalty, not to the Fire Lord, but the Spirit of Shu Valley. 

The kid got teary eyed and seemed to be shocked they were all alive, if his choked words were anything to go by. Then a grin that rivaled Agni erupted across that inhumanly perfect face. Zu Len was the first person to be approached and the poor man looked like he was ready to be murdered and was confused when he was hugged instead. 

That kid, who actually went by Spirit, was a true healer. They spent most of the time with the former soldiers asking about how their healing went and got angry about the poor quality of treatment some of the injuries got. When Zu Len asked about the burn he inflicted, he received a gentle smile and was told it wasn't his fault.

Chey was more interested by the fact the kid avoided the question. Was it worse than just a bad flesh burn? Was the eye or possibly the ear damaged too? 

He got his answer to those questions when the failed student arrived. Zhao looked crazed, bordering on insanity, when he saw Jeong Jeong and Spirit. The man had no control of his flames, which was the exact opposite of the scarred kid.

Spirit didn't block at all. They dispelled everything sent their way. With an elegant crouch, the temperature of the whole area dropped and lightning danced around them.

The barbs about being beaten by a half blind and deaf teenager and the man having had less control than a toddler had to have stung as the kid then lectured Zhao on lack of control and poor education as newly formed clouds crackled with energy. It was like the kid really was a Spirit in the flesh and held the power of the weather itself. Chey hated that he missed how that encounter ended when he was drug away, but he never heard a thunderclap that would sound the admiral's death, so he assumed the man lived. It was still hard to believe this kid was real, but at the same time, that was clearly a damaged child who found their calling. 

'(•V•)'

Katara couldn't help but blame herself for them being chased through the town. If she hadn't helped Aang talk the boys into letting them go to the festival to get intel Spirit might have missed over the last three years, if she had gone up on stage instead of him, if she had used her bending to stop the guards before the running started, but deep down she knew it wasn't her fault.

Aang wanted to go for several reasons and had been upset he wasn't the one called up on stage. Sokka had said fine when he saw the way Spirit looked at the fireflakes and masks. If Spirit hadn't looked longingly at the festival despite his words of protest, well, alright she could understand missing home, so he was excused. That meant they all shared blame for this.

She was hesitant to trust the hooded figure that claimed to be trying to help them. He led them to a dead end and Spirit had to get them out of it. Now he had led them to warriors with spears who didn't seem too happy to see him. At least Spirit seemed to have them seeming hesitant to try anything, despite him not really having done anything but knock aside one spear.

After a moment of awkward silence, one of the men ran off while the others invited the Gaang to follow them to camp. None of them seemed to care about the three in blue and orange, they were focused on the blue masked figure in black. They seemed almost reverent. 

When they got to camp, they were greeted by a crowd of people who looked at Spirit as if he hung the moon. Spirit looked at one person in the mass, gasped, and removed his mask. Like a wave, they all fell to their knees and bowed. Then came the whispers, almost prayers. These men and women owed their lives to Spirit and they seemed to be pledging them to him now. Poor Spirit was just gaping.

Beyond the sea of bowed bodies, a tent flap was flung aside loudly and a much older man with a faint scar by his eye exited. He almost seemed to snear until he caught sight of Spirit and all emotions fled his face. He waded through the crowd with ease and referred to Spirit as the Savior of the 41st Division as he introduced himself as Jeong Jeong.

Spirit ended up smiling happily as he was surrounded by what Katara assumed was the remainder of the soldiers Spirit had saved the day he got his scar while the rest of them were escorted to the former Admiral's tent. Sokka was hesitant to leave their newest member alone out there, but with her and Aang's assurance that those people out there would do anything for their friend, he agreed to go, but not before he got a soft smile and a nod from Spirit himself. Jeong Jeong seemed unamused that he wasn't as important as a 16-year-old which reminded her of Zhao for a moment. 

Turns out, that was because he had been Zhao's firebending master. His student's careless destruction was what left him "disenchanted" with firebending and the Fire Lord himself. This came to a head 3 years before. 

It seemed when news that the Crown Prince had died in an Earthbending attack on a division of trainees, the Admiral did some asking around and then, at the Prince's funeral, had denounced the Fire Lord and the Fire Nation in front of the entire Caldera, thousands of people. Over a quarter of the Fire Nation army deserted with him that day, including those who had survived the attack.

Stories had spread through the city and soon the whole nation about how the Fire Lord had planned to sacrifice an entire division of young benders for a trap, how the late Prince Zuko had spoken out against it only to be sent to join them, and how those who had survived the attack had only done so because the prince had insisted the camp be moved to the forest. There were several assassination attempts on Fire Lord Ozai over the following year as well as a movement by the people to have Iroh, Azulon's first born, to be given his birthright back. Prince Iroh was the one to stop both movements when he announced he was uninterested in ruling and that he would be dedicating the remainder of his life to his remaining family while he assisted his aunts instruct his niece to prepare her for her eventual ascension to the throne. 

In the meantime, Jeong Jeong had set up a number of safe places for citizens of the Fire Nation to escape to if they needed to. One of which was the camp they were currently in. It was quite the story and it left Katara with the feeling she had just uncovered a huge secret. 

The timeline, the determination, the body language… it was too much to be a coincidence. Spirit was Prince Zuko and no one seemed to realize it. She looked at the others' unmasked faces, hoping to see the understanding she felt on their faces, but it seemed she was the only one to figure it out. 

After that, the conversation turned to Aang being the Avatar. Being the excited kid that he was, Aang asked if Jeong Jeong would teach him firebending, which turned into a semi argument and then to a lecture on how firebending was a curse. Of course that was when Spirit, or rather Fire Prince Zuko, rejoined them.

That icy calm fury was something Katara would expect from a waterbender, but it seemed to fit the hiding prince. He calmly tore the deserter's reasoning to shreds and explained that the old admiral only saw half of what was possible with fire. Katara wasn't positive, but she thought she saw blue sparks around his fingers at one point. After that, Zuko-Spirit ushered them all outside to a secluded spot near the river so they could call Appa. 

It was then that she offered to help with his hair, which he seemed more than happy to accept. Katara took her time combing it out and had the prince nearly melting with contentment. Only then did she ask how he wanted her to put it up, but she used his real name instead of the one he had been going by.

He went from a purring puddle to stiffly hissing in an instant. She was quick to apologize and explained she had only figured it out while Jeong Jeong was telling his story. He looked at her with the saddest eyes and said that the child who he had been, the one who wanted nothing more than to please his father, had died in that skirmish and that he and Spirit were not the same person.

She was glad the other two had moved away as she had started on his hair, because she was now hearing about just how bad the Fire Lord's own son thought the man was. What kind of man would willingly kill his son to be next in the line of succession, well, the son of the man who asked him to do it she guessed. She felt she owed a lot to Spirit's mother for him being the kind soul he was. 

While he talked, she braided. By the end, she had a few dozen braids that she tied up high on his head and braided them together. It was very pretty she thought as she hugged him at the end of his tale.

She promised not to tell the others about who he had been and that she was glad he was traveling with them, prince or not. He smiled and they found the others, who had unloaded Appa's saddle and were looking through the packs for food. With twin eye rolls, they made themselves known.

Aang looked sheepish at her then turned to Spirit and did a double take while Sokka was just gaping with a mouthful of half chewed jerky. Spirit blushed and went to get a fire going while Katara rounded on the two with a glare. Both had the nerve to act like they hadn't done anything wrong making the girl wonder why some boys were so clueless. 

They ended up camping away from the main camp that night and in the morning, Aang got his first lesson on firebending when he was roused to be ready to greet the sun. She didn't witness it, having been asleep herself, but she heard all about it at breakfast. 

Those two ended up making the food as Aang tried to get a feeling for their cooking fire. As with most meals the former prince made, it was different, but tasty. Sadly, Aang wasn't able to get the fire to listen to him, which was how he convinced the former admiral to give him advice and ended up with a smoldering leaf as he squatted on a sunny rock.

She was thankful when he lost control that Spirit was once again there to stop the flames. But that was when the yelling started. Sokka was upset, Aang was ashamed, Jeong Jeong was arrogant, and the hidden prince bleeding from cuts on his hands from balling them into fists too hard. The argument about teaching methods that followed was harsh, but she felt her friend was only trying to get the older man to see what the actual problem was.

Eventually, the man returned to his tent and she drug her friend to the river to wash his cuts. Both of them were shocked when the water she was bending began to glow and the bleeding crescents closed up. She could heal with water!

She didn't get to celebrate for long because before they could find the others, Admiral Zhoa showed up in river boats and started attacking the camp. She got separated from Spirit in the chaos and didn't see him again until they were flying off. 

The large braid had come undone and many of the smaller ones were partially loose as well. As the others talked about what happened, she untied the mess, started taking out the braids, and redoing the braids from his scalp. She only stopped when Aang presented her with her mother's necklace. 

She thanked him with a peck on the cheek and moved back to Spirit. He offered to help her put it on, but she had another idea. She told him to keep it safe for her.

With tears in his eyes, Spirit put it around his own neck, as she hoped he would. It looked great on him and with the braids, he looked like he was a daughter of the poles. With a promise to protect it with honor and she knew he wouldn't let anything happen to it.

It was her way of laying claim to Spirit as family. If anyone said anything about him when they got to the Northern watertribe, they would have her to deal with. No one got to pick on her cousin, absolutely no one.

'(•V•)'

Aang was ashamed, not for the first time over the past few days. Compared to this, the shame from him talking them into going to the festival only for them to get chased by firebenders was nothing. He had gone behind his sifu's back to get someone else to teach him only to goof off and almost hurt Katara. He deserved to be yelled at, but only Sokka did.

Spirit didn't raise his voice, he let his soft, smoke damaged voice pull on the guilt until the airbender felt like he was drowning. He never even focused his words on the Avatar, instead he was clearly admonishing Admiral Jeong Jeong. Aang knew he should have listened better, but Spirit wasn't blaming his pupil, he was blaming the older man, not just for this, but Zhao too. 

The 12-year-old had felt fire was so much like wind that he thought he could handle it, but that wasn't the case. He just stood there regretting his choices until the deserter went back to his tent and Katara pulled Spirit away, when he let Sokka drag him off to Appa where he got a lecture about safety. That lesson was cut short by the sounds of fighting. 

He didn't get to join the fight as he was too busy saddling his bison and helping Sokka load up. Katara ran in just as they finished saying Zhao was attacking as the area suddenly got colder and the winds immediately changed. The storm formed so quickly, likely from the smoke and water in the chilly air, but Aang couldn't explain the sparks crackling in the clouds. 

They flew that way in time to hear Zhao bellow in rage. Before they reached the river they saw Spirit waving from the trees. When the got close, the boy leapt onto Appa's head and slipped something into Aang's hand with a wink before walking into the saddle where he was punched in the arm by a worried Sokka and pulled into another hair brushing by Katara. Looking at what he was handed, he realized it was Katara's missing necklace!

Babbling about the change in the winds led to Spirit explaining what he had done. That got Sokka all excited about science, humidity, and the impact of a firebender pulling so much heat out of water and how it might allow him to pretend to be a waterbender. That was when Aang interrupted to present Katara with her mother's necklace. 

He tried to play it cool, but his heart raced when she kissed him. That happiness morphed into confusion and jealousy when she then gave the heirloom to Spirit for safekeeping. Aang realized when the boy cried that this meant Katara was going to keep wearing the fishing line choker he made for her, cheering him up instantly as he urged Appa ever more north.

'(•V•)'

The past two days sucked. Being overruled, Spirit saving Katara from being up on the stage with a firebender, getting chased, being led by a man going on and on about his leader, spears near his face, Spirit running off with his buddies leaving them with the leader who hated everything about himself, Spirit berating the man, then Katara making the firebender's hair so pretty, Aang whining about fire ignoring him, Aang running off to learn from Crazy Hair, Spirit having to save Katara from Aang's stupidity, that scarily quiet lecture, Admiral Sideburns showing up, Spirit fighting the man alone, now he just wanted a distraction. He got it for a little bit with some science talk before Aang pulled the necklace Katara lost out of nowhere and gave it back.

Of course Katara would do something like have Spirit wear their mother's necklace. The guy cried as he promised to keep it safe and looked great doing it. Ah man, now his body was confused, again! Curses!

'(•V•)'

Zhao was having a horrible week. Ever since he rode that stupid, overgrown shrew past Taku, Miyuki, a cat wanted dead by Azulon's demand, had tracked him down and was was wreaking havok on the ships was personally driving him mad. The cat was at least 20 years old, but not a single person in the entire fleet seemed to be able to catch her.

He could barely list her deeds.

That ancient ball of fur had nearly killed him a dozen times by now. Nearly falling overboard after being tripped when she ran between his feet or being pushed by a crewmen who had been tripped by her, poisoned mice in his food, weaponry falling or having been misplaced so he nearly got impaled when she made a move, crewman lulled to sleep by her purring so they almost crashed the ship. It only grew more frustrating from there.

She had killed and partially eaten two messenger hawks, unleashed mice in the food stores (which was where the poisoned mouse had come from he was sure), worked the stupid comodorhinos up into a panic that nearly capsized one ship and caused a stampede on an other, and that wasn't the half of it. She had somehow gotten the coal wet enough that three ships damaged their engines, the stream pipes exploded on one, every nautical map was shredded, compasses mashed on the floors from where she somehow removed them from their mounts, but none of that was what she had done to him personally. 

She had a habit of appearing out of nowhere and tripping his servers so his meal would end up on the floor where she would taste it or cause it to be spilled on his person. He tried poisoning his food so she would eat it, but those meals were either uninterrupted or ended up all over him. The food he did manage to eat always contained cat hair or claw sheath. But as bad as the meals were, sleeping was worse.

Yowling at random times of the night, the screech of claws on Fire Nation steel ringing through the ship, cuts and bruises from where she managed to get into his room and ran across him or leapt on him as he tried to rest, waking to her trying to smother his with her body or her resting all of her weight on his neck or throat, having feces and hairballs that he would shift only to get it all over him. It was infuriating! The nights she wasn't bothering him was when she was damaging the ships or going after the animals. He never knew what kind of night it was going to be, so even on peaceful nights he could relax his guard in case she did decide to pay him a visit.

When he received news that the Avatar's newest follower had been spotted during the Fire Days Festival, he was more than ready to get off the ship and kill that halfbreed welp to relieve himself of some stress. His interrogation of the captain of the guard led him to believe that his old master had a hand in the Avatar and mongrel's escape. Well, that just made things more interesting. 

The ride up the river was the calmest things around him had been all week, which he took as Agni's blessing on his mission. At the first sign of a camp, he had his men start firing. That was when the inbred child showed up.

It was so badly deformed that its body wasn't sure if it was male or female, not that bothered Zhao. He was planning on putting it down either way. Blights like that needed cleansed for the sanctity of Fire bloodlines.

The child was skilled enough to knock out all of his men, but didn't even have the sense to try to block the fire thrown at them. It seemed the monster didn't need to since the flames never reached its skin. The brand over the mutts eye mocked him as he threw stronger and stronger blasts at the slowly walking figure.

Finally, the mongrel stopped and then as they dropped to a crouch with an infuriatingly slow blink, the air warmed by the fire blasts became icy cold. Seeds of lightning encased the inhuman form as it began to speak. The voice was like a breeze from a crypt, musky with a hint of death.

The child was mocking him! The welp was as good and blind and deaf, but it compared him to its baby sister at age 3 before claiming that it was a smear against the toddler's ability since she was clearly superior to him, a fleet admiral. The sky itself chuckled at the joke.

There was then a calm lecture about the nature of fire and how firebending was so poorly taught. Zhao didn't listen as he threw more flames at the imp. Instead of dodging, the brat just cocked their head to the side and slowly blinked those yellow eyes.

Suddenly, it all fell into place. He hadn't put it together before when that gaudy white and green gown was clean, but now that it was tinged with ash, it was so clear. It wasn't a human child at all. It was the spirit cursed cat, Miyuki, in human form! 

Screaming in rage, he realized two things. One, Miyuki was gone, vanished like the cat she is. Two, his river boats were sinking into the river, wreathed in flames. He growled in fury, completely missing the former master watching him from across the river.

'(•V•)'

Jeong Jeong was questioning his sanity. The branded child telling him off couldn't be who he felt they were, yet here they were, spouting Iroh's usual lecture about the benefits of firebending. Prince Zuko had been dead three years, buried alive by earthbenders in the Battle of Shu Valley. How could the spirit savior of that day be the fallen prince?

Spirit had Sozin's gold eyes, Ozai's cheekbones, Ursa's lips and nose, and Iroh's passion. There was little doubt that the child had been Prince Zuko, but how had he come to this Healer? How could the child who had tried to gain his father's favor by pointing out flaws in a General's plan become the fierce warrior that forced earthbenders to release men from the soil?

He had lived over a thousand days with men and women that survived that trap and spoke of it every night. He knew about the young bender that sacrificed part of their face to save a life. He just didn't understand how those two children were one in the same.

Twice he had been chastised by this 16-year-old who had been mourned as dead for the last three years and both times he felt a pull of guilt in his gut for disagreeing with him. Part of him relished the idea that fire was useful in healing. To seal wounds that would not stop bleeding, to warm bodies too cold to warm themselves, to burn out infection, to heat water to steam to ease congested chests he understood, but the idea you could pull the fire out of a fever or return lightning to a failing heart were pure nonsense. 

Yet as he watched the boy calmly ignore Zhao sending waves of fire at him. That burn on his face alone should have scared him away from bending, yet here he was. Without a single form or kata, the Prince turned Spirit dispelled flames that most masters could stop. Then he went down, and the temperature went with him.

Never in all his years had the former admiral witnessed the like. The sky grew clouded, lightning danced, and Jeong Jeong wondered if the bender in front of him was even human or Koh wearing a stolen face. Without an attack, the former pupil was defeated by Zhao's own flames. 

Watching the grown man yell and the young man vanish like a shadow despite the pale robes, the deserter questioned his very existence. There was only one thing he was sure of amidst it all. He needed to write the Grand Lotus and let him decide if this was a blessing or a curse.

'(•V•)'

Spirit hadn't known he was living in pain until it was gone. He had always assumed that the reason no one from the 41st had ended up in that greenhouse with him was because the soldiers he had permanently damaged his voice helping hadn't survived. But here, standing out in front was the man with the worst injury he had worked on, the man who left him with the ever visible reminder that he wasn't his father's son anymore, alive and well.

He had pulled off the mask to make sure it wasn't a trick and every one of the faces he vaguely recalled bowed their heads and took the knee. He nearly cried for them to stop, that he wasn't worthy when he realized they were ledging service to him and him alone. Instead, he stood there in shock until a man with wild hair exited a tent with a flourish that would have fit right into a stage play.

The man moved like a man who was used to being above everyone around him. This had to be Former Admiral Jeong Jeong, the living legend the Chey had gone on so much about. Despite his status, Spirit received a bow and was referred as the Savior of the 41st Division before confirming his identity.

Spell broken, the healer was quickly surrounded by faces he hadn't seen in years. Their happiness was contagious, but Spirit was glad to catch it. He checked on every person he had used his flames on and only one seemed hesitant to be near him. Not because of the pain he had inflicted on them to save their lives, but because he was the one who stole most of the sight and hearing Spirit had once had on one side of his face.

The man's name was Zu Len. He had been a sergeant in charge of training. He was now the father of twin boys, Zuko and Lee, named for two of the people who died trying to save the division and his wife was Hana, a guardswoman who had been there that day and had seen Commander Lee get swallowed in front of his tent. Spirit could hardly believe they named one of their sons after him.

He was still reeling that he was the reason that family existed and he had an infant named after himself when he wandered off to find his friends. His good mood fell as he heard Jeong Jeong say that "fire brings only destruction and pain. It forces those of us burdened with its care to walk a razor's edge between humanity and savagery. Eventually, we are torn apart." And his suppenly his nearly forgotten rage bubbled coldly in his chest.

He barely remembered what he said, but he eventually pulled the others away from the toxic mentality of the former admiral. He must have worried Katara because she pulled him aside and asked to work on his hair. He was floating on memories of his mother petting his hair while she was pregnant with Azula when Katara called him Zuko.

Guilt instantly replaced all the good feelings he had been enjoying seconds earlier and he was ready for a fight. Katara softened and apologized. She had figured out who he was from the story of why Jeong Jeong became a deserter and wanted him to know that it didn't change how she felt about him, changed or not.

She listened and played with his hair as he let out hurts he hadn't really had time or a place to unburden himself. She gave him reassuring touches when he started to blame himself and when he was done she hugged him and said she was glad he was with them and that she'd keep his secret. He loved her at that moment like he had Lu Ten when he had explained he wanted to know more than just bending and was taken to learn swordsmanship. He wasn't used to being accepted for all of his qualities.

Aang getting shocked by his hair was a stinging blow that was only soothed by Sokka's awe. He couldn't hide his blush, so he set to work on getting a fire going so they could make dinner. His good mood returned and stayed until he saw Aang juggling fire.

His heart was in his throat as he raced towards the boy. He knew fire and he knew the airbender. Something bad was about to happen and he just prayed he got there before it happened. 

He barely got between a frightened Katara and the uncontrolled flame. One of the first rules of teaching was to watch the student so you could keep things from getting out of hand. It was little wonder Zhao was so careless in his instructor just left him alone like that.

Of course the man showed up after the fact and tried to blame the avatar and fire for his own shortcomings, but Spirit wasn't going to let him off easy. He grounded himself with discomfort as he explained exactly what the man had done wrong from teaching someone else's student to harmful neglect. The man eventually left and Katara pulled him away as Sokka stayed with Aang.

He hadn't noticed that he had drawn blood until he unclenched his fists. Now that he knew, they burned painfully. It felt better, only mildly stinging, as the waterbender covered them in cool water. They both gasped as the water took on a pale blue light and the cuts from his nails closed and healed before their eyes. Healing through waterbending. He wasn't the only healer in the Gaang now!

Just as he was about to hug her, flames started flying. He pretended to go with her for a short way before breaking away and moving to face the attackers. He should have known it was going to be Zhao. 

What followed was hardly a fight. It was like when a toddler thought they were hurting you as they slapped and screamed, but it was minorly annoying at best. So he may have unfairly compared the man to Azula when she first learned to bend, but quickly apologized to La La for it. 

He had just been showing off when he pulled the heat out of the air, but he wanted to get his point across. Usually when he did this, it rained immediately, but the air was drier here than around the swamp, so he only got low clouds. The lightning was new, but he tried not to show how panicked it made him.

He lectured until he saw a familiar white figure in the trees. By that point Zhao had already torched his own ships, so he quickly moved off. As the man failed a frustrated roar, Spirit and Miyuki snorted in amusement. 

She seemed as pleased to see him as Spirit was confused she was here. Scented on him, likely due to how much he smelled of Momo, and inspected his hair. He hadn't realized it had started to come loose and told her he would see if Katara could fix it. Content, she dropped something blue on his foot and sent him up into the treetops just in time for the others to head his way on Appa. He got one last affectionate rub before his masters disappeared into the foliage.

He wasn't sure what Miyuki was doing with a watertribe necklace, but he handed it to Aang with a smirk. Sokka looked like he had been terrified for him, which was sweet until he was smacked as well. Katara took one look at his hair and made him sit in front of her. 

It was ridiculous how much his braids had unraveled since he had seen it only a minute or two ago. He relished the feel of the wind around him, fingers against his scalp, the eager voice of Aang defying their movement, and Sokka's excitement about Spirit's ability to leech heat. He had thought that was going to be the highpoint of his crazy day, but then Katara gave him her mother's necklace to keep safe and he realized she was just as possessive of him as the healing spirit was.

He vowed to keep it safe, a promise sealed by tears as he wore it around his throat. Was this what real family was like? What he had only gotten moments of growing up? If so, he was blessed beyond words.

'(•V•)'

Miyuki was rather pleased with stage 1. The man was convinced that every mishap was her doing and not his crew taking advantage of the situation as a way to get him killed. She wasn't going to let him die that easily, she had only just gotten started. 

She was so proud of her kitten for showing the fleatick he was barely a bother. It was nice that his new litter was grooming him properly, even if the fleatick had damaged that wonderful black fur. She trusted her kitten knew what to do with that collar she had taken from the fleatick's room.

Now, she needed to start stage 2. She just hoped La was in a sharing mood.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the closest reference I have for the way Katara styled Spirit's hair.
> 
> Goddess Braids With a Long Braided High Pony from https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.glamour.com/gallery/goddess-braids-hairstyle-ideas/amp


End file.
